Joe Kozenczak, who was the Chief of Detectives of the Des Plaines, Illinois Police Department, managed the investigation of the disappearance of a guy named Robert Piest back in 1978, a case which led detectives down a grisly path—and resulted in the arrest and conviction of psycho-serial killer John Wayne Gacy.

Now granted, Gacy has not been the rage in some time. Even among true crime buffs, he may have been pushed aside for the Dahmers, the Bernardos/Homolkas and the DC Snipers.

But what makes THE CHICAGO KILLER worth a read (and the $21.99 outlay for paperback) is the “from the street” account that you rarely get from a reporter who compiled a book from extensive research (not to discount them, by the way; there are plenty of good ones.)

KILLER is partly narrative and certainly well-edited—and an intriguing page-turner to boot. Proof: I picked it up in used book store and read a good 15 pages before throwing it in my basket to purchase. For lovers of true crime, this will make an excellent addition to your library, and perhaps bring a slightly different perspective to the Gacy murders.

Who I am . . .

About Me

I am an author and instructor, in that order (for now.) My debut novel (which debuted in the midlist) was released by Penguin Putnam in 2004 and my second novel was released early 2006.
As for this blog, it has been profiled in many online magazines, blogs and news stories, including the Washington Post, Entertainment Weekly, the Boston Globe, the Dallas Morning News, the LA Times and Publishers Lunch.

Why am I doing this . . .

The 2006 Needles . . .

The 2005 Needles . . .

Attention POD authors . . .

Attention publicists . . .

To answer the deluge of questions I have been receiving from publicists: I'll review pretty much anything that is good--but it better be good, or I'll never look at another one of your books again. Then I'll hunt you down. Fiction preferred (no fantasy or young adult, go easy on the science fiction.) Non-fiction should be memoir, humor, self-help. Definite no-nos: cookbooks, textbooks, porn, books without verbs. And it must be POD (no small presses.) Otherwise, email with pitch first.